Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/423872
Newmarket Place by Susan Pederson photos courtesy p3Architecture pArtnership I magine if I said to you, that for the last two years of your life, you can't have a shower, but may take a bath just once a week?" asks James Youck, architect principal with P3Architecture Partner- ship. "That doesn't seem like a very good quality of life in my estimation." The new addition to Newmarket Manor in Tisdale, Saskatchewan – called Newmarket Place – addresses these and myriad other quality of life issues for its residents. This is achieved through a thoughtful design and construction pro- cess based on the Eden Alternative phi- losophy – an international movement dedicated to creating quality of life for elders and their care partners. "Features such as showers with XY gantry systems in each of the private bathrooms of the Newmarket addition mean that residents can maintain that feeling of empowerment, as they par- ticipate in their regular daily routines," explains Youck. That's just for starters. The project is comprised of three cottages, each accommodating 12 long-term care beds in individual, private rooms with modern amenities. Each cottage houses its own kitchen and family room, allowing visitors to enjoy a private visit, while enjoying the outside deck during warm weather. It was built to replace Sasko Park Lodge (built in 1958) as part of a provin- cial move to replace 13 outdated health facilities across the province. "The cottage design looked at how to maxi- mize the use of the staff while enhanc- ing the life experience of the residents. For example, distances are kept short, so staff can spend less time moving patients and more time taking care of them," adds Youck. The model used begins to address the three plagues of loneliness, help- lessness and boredom, so common among resident s of long-term care facilities. The design process utilized Lean Architecture principles and a pro- cess of engagement with staff, which further focused the design of the units. "When we considered the staff, their work processes and interactive engagement, we were able to achieve some interesting and some very suc- cessful results with the design, to sup- port the way people want to interact," says Paul Blaser, president of RBM Architecture. And while the traditional model of care involves staff having more distinct and separate roles, the New- market facility supports more involve- ment with residents, in various roles, to create a more family-like model for care. "The staff become an extension of the family, and the family become an exten- sion of the staff," says Blaser. Residents from Newmarket Manor moved into the new building – Newmar- ket Place – in March 2013. Renovations to the former Newmarket Manor are currently underway with completion expected in early 2015 after which the current residents of Sasko Park Lodge will move into the renovated Newmar- ket Manor. For the first time, all long- term care residents of Tisdale will be housed under one roof. "Minimizing the turmoil while mov- ing all the residents is a challenge," says Shane Merriman, CEO of Kelsey Trail Health Region. "This is their home. I'm very pleased with the new building, and the renovations will bring the original building in line with the new build, so families won't feel as though their loved ones are moving into an old facility." The design team worked hard to ensure the updated original build- ing married nicely with the new build, while also designing around the needs of residents, which vary from dementia care to mobility. Brock Dergousoff, proj- ect manager with Stuart Olson, says the new building is an excellent facility and came in on budget, in spite of being two- and-a-half hours from a major centre, making the trek to work challenging for some trades. "It's always very intense co-ordinat- ing the trades on schedule within tight budget constraints, but in the end they came together and did an excellent job in providing a facility that this com- munity really needs," says Dergousoff. "It means a lot to this community, to be able to offer this level of care to an aging population. The building is functioning very well and has some attractive fea- tures like the laminate beams that make it look really nice. But it's the service they are providing that has the biggest impact." While Dergousoff and his team worked on tying the new building into the old structur- ally, Greg Fluter, partner with MacPherson Engineering Inc. and his team were charged with creating and connect- ing the internal systems. Ultimately, it was determined that treating the new build as a stand-alone building made more sense. "The new system employs a high-efficiency radiant heating system as mandated for these types of facili- ties, with condensing boiler technology. Each cottage has its own air handling unit, fire protection and plumbing zones, so if anything catastrophic hap- pened in a particular cottage, it would remain isolated." Fluter's team was kept on their toes during construction dealing with the high water table in Tisdale. "The team at Stuart Olson had to continually pump water out of the basement during con- struction, so the basement mechanical room is built like a swimming pool, with dewatering sump pumps that handle high water situations," explains Fluter. No matter what lies ahead for the res- idents of Newmarket Place, they can rest assured that the family-like atmosphere and focus on an enhanced quality of life will help optimize these pivotal years. "It's common sense to break away from warehousing seniors. We are trying to enhance that quality of life and reduce the feelings of isolation by offering a warm, inviting and safe place to live," says Youck. n Location 2001 Newmarket Drive, Tisdale, Saskatchewan owner/DeveLoper Kelsey Trail Health Region architect P3Architecture Partnership (P3A) in association with RBM Architecture GeneraL contractor Stuart Olson StructuraL conSuLtant Brownlee Beaton Kreke MechanicaL conSuLtant MacPherson Engineering Inc. eLectricaL conSuLtant Alfa Engineering Ltd. totaL area 35,757 square feet totaL coSt $18.4 million courtesy Kelsey trAil heAlth region december 2014 /61 Newmarket Place " 1:42 PM